State Budget 2025-26 highlights for the Hills
South Australia’s State Budget 2025-26 was released a few weeks back. In case you missed it, we’re going to discuss what it covered and why it matters for our region.
As always, these are meaty reports, so we’ll focus on the categories that impact the Adelaide Hills such as infrastructure, housing, cost of living, and region-specific goals.
There’s a strong focus on regional areas, with a total of $1.8 billion in initiatives.
Here are the highlights.
Infrastructure, roads & transport
- The new Mount Barker Hospital: $365.6 million investment, with a 2027/28 completion date.
- South Eastern Freeway Upgrade: $350 million investment, set to be completed by June 2029.
- Princes Highway Corridor: $601.3 million investment, with a completion date of June 2029.
- Myponga to Yankalilla Main South Road Upgrades: $80 million over the next five years to add two new overtaking lanes and widening narrow areas.
- Mount Barker On-Demand Service: $12.5 million over the next five years to transition the current Mount Barker On-Demand (Keoride) trial service into a permanent Adelaide Metro service, plus a new fleet of electric vehicle buses and EV charging stations.
Environment
- River Murray environmental efforts: $109.7 million over the next four years to improve basin health, plus $17 million to improve the wetland habitat across the Murray and Coorong.
- Emergency services investments: $5.9 million in upskilling Country Fire Service volunteers, $2.8 million for bushfire risk mapping, and $2 million for drone use.
Economy
- Rewards for businesses to become energy-efficient: Grants between $2,500 – $75,000, support for SA businesses impacted by global tariffs.
- SMB and VC funding: $3.2 million to support small and family businesses, and $50 million towards a new VC fund to grow innovation in SA.
Arts
- New Country Arts SA programs: $500,000 to boost arts and crafts in the region, plus a $13 million ‘A Place to Create’ initiative to support local artists and creatives.
It’s great to see the state put more emphasis on the regions that make out state great (like the Adelaide Hills). While there wasn’t any specific housing or cost of living actions or resolutions for the Adelaide Hills, we know first-hand as real estate agents in the region that conditions continue to be problematic.
Here’s what we’re seeing:
- Most of our local markets such as Mount Barker, Strathalbyn and Murray Bridge have increased 10-15% in the past 12 months. Stock levels in July 2025 are 23% lower than July 2024.
- Rents have increased 5-7% in the past year and our vacancy rate is below 1%.
Mount Barker recorded a 12.9% year-on-year growth, compared to Adelaide’s 1.6% growth.
The TLDR? Adelaide Hills real estate is hot property, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future.
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